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CLEARWATER, Fla. – Sometime early in 2014, one of the best to ever wear a Phillies uniform looked around his hospital room and saw folks in much poorer condition than he was.

"I've been in fusion and chemo centers sitting in a chair with a needle in my hand with people that are dying all around me," Mike Schmidt said Sunday. "I hoped I would never see anything like that. It became normal for me for over a month to sit with these people who were further along with their cancer. I was usually the most fortunate person in the room."

Schmidt, a guest instructor, looked healthy Sunday at Bright House Field, dressed in a sharp black sports coat and chatting about his role with Comcast SportsNet. He will serve as color analyst for 13 home games this season, something CSN has dubbed "Sundays with Schmidt."

Before Schmidt could make his yearly spring cameo in Clearwater, he had to beat skin cancer. Doctors discovered Stage 3 melanoma in a mole on Schmidt's back during a chance dermatologist appointment in August. Schmidt underwent chemotherapy and radiation treatment for about a month earlier this year, ending on Valentine's Day. Sunday was the first time Schmidt addressed the illness publically.

"Most of my issues with the whole thing was mental, dealing with it mentally. I couldn't concentrate on anything, had no taste buds, I couldn't speak. My voice was raspy. Lot of side effects that I had," Schmidt said. "I was very lucky."

Schmidt said according to his last scan, there are no signs of melanoma in his body. He will undergo similar scans for the next five years or so. For now, he's in good shape.

"I feel fantastic right now," Schmidt said.

Schmidt called Sunday's 5-0 loss to the Pirates along with play-by-play man Tom McCarthy and color analyst Matt Stairs. But this is not his first foray into broadcasting. Schmidt held the same position in 1990, when he was a part of the PRISM broadcast team a season after retiring.

Schmidt admits he wasn't at his best back then.

"I've got to be honest with you. I think my content was good," Schmidt said. "But back then my lack of emotion or upbeat tempo with my voice, I just couldn't get excited about a ground ball single up the middle."

Schmidt felt uncomfortable chatting with players and coaches he played with and under just a year before. His strategy was to just go to the game and tell viewers how he saw it.

"I didn't do a lot of research," Schmidt said. "I watched the game, and people saw it through my eyes. But that wasn't necessarily what the job description was. They wanted a guy that was going to dive in, do the research, talk to players and come with a lot of ammunition when they watch the game. I always believed I would be entertaining enough."

This time around will be different, according to the 64-year-old Schmidt. He'll fly to Philadelphia the Saturday before he is slated to work and chat with Phillies manager Ryne Sandberg and players.

Things won't be too heavy, though. Schmidt wants his Sundays to be a break from the monotony of a 162-game season.

"The Sunday broadcasts are not going to be filled with information and stats. It's going to be more of an entertainment day," Schmidt said. "Who knows what's going to come up, but it's going to be a lot lighter."